Udall Flip Flops on Trade

The Left-wing online journal Colorado Confidential wants to know why their preferred U.S. Senate candidate, Boulder liberal Rep. Mark Udall, has waffled on the issue of free trade agreements:

Colorado's House members voted unanimously in favor of the [Peru Free Trade Agreement], but some state residents don't understand why, because in 2005 four House members -- Democrats Diana DeGette, John Salazar and Mark Udall and Republican Tom Tancredo -- opposed CAFTA, a similar measure that relaxed trade regulations with a block of Central American countries, including Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua.

"It's just a mystery," says Reed Kelly, a cattle rancher operating outside of Meeker, Colorado, on the Western Slope, when referring to the House of Representatives' vote on the Peru FTA.

Kelly joined the Western Organization of Research Councils, a rural advocacy organization based in Billings, Montana, to oppose the Peru agreement.

"I really can't quite understand it," Kelly says. "This is basically just an expansion of NAFTA and CAFTA, and if there were reasons to vote against CAFTA, those reasons are even greater for the Peru FTA."

Trade agreements like NAFTA and its extension, CAFTA, are no stranger to controversy. Numerous organizations have opposed the measures due to their more relaxed labor, agricultural and environmental regulations, which have led to an outsourcing of jobs from the U.S. and allegations of workers' rights abuses in places such as Mexico, among other issues.

Kelly says he's personally experienced the effects of the government's free-trade agreements on the ranching industry, where cheaper beef imports have marginalized beef producers on the Western Slope.

"There are a lot less of us in business," Kelly says, claiming that it's getting harder to afford hay costs for ranching because of the lowered prices for beef that have occurred under the agreements. Particularly, Kelly is concerned that with the passage of the Peru FTA, Brazil, a prominent beef producer, will be able to flood the market through Peru, due to inadequate rules on labeling a product's country of origin.

It speaks volumes when your own friends and supporters can't figure out where you stand on an issue like free trade. But not surprising for someone who has been caught selling his vote before. Maybe Udall should start preparing for next year's coming Senate campaign by debating himself.

Udall Defending Us from Asteroids

A clipping from Washington, DC, this week, that highlights Boulder liberal Rep. Mark Udall's leading concerns about our national security:

“NASA’s NEO survey program is our ‘insurance policy’ against getting taken by surprise by an incoming asteroid. Much progress has been made in detecting and cataloging the largest NEOs over the last decade. However, much more remains to be done,” said Udall. “We need to survey the smaller but still potentially hazardous asteroids that could do significant damage if they impact or explode above the Earth’s surface. While the probability of such a direct hit is low, we in Congress have a responsibility for the safety of American citizens and we have directed NASA to come up with a survey plan. NASA didn’t deliver a plan that would get the job done. I will continue to work with NASA and hold the agency accountable until their plan is complete.”

It is good to see Udall expressing a concern for our nation's security. While he has no problem slandering an American general leading our forces in the central front in the war against Islamofascist terrorists, Udall at least is taking a strong stand to protect us all from incoming asteroids.

Or then again, maybe he's just feeling a little bit nostalgic.

Where Is Udall on the Issues?

The Left in Colorado has been so bored, they've been complaining that Republican U.S. Senate candidate Bob Schaffer has not taken the time to update his campaign website with clear and detailed opinions on the issues of the day. This fact alone makes a recent development at the campaign site of Boulder liberal Rep. Mark Udall very interesting: His issues page is down. Who on the Left will take notice that their candidate has withdrawn his official positions on campaign issues important to the people of Colorado?

Meanwhile, as a public service, Schaffer v Udall is picking up the slack with links to Udall's stances on a host of issues, including:

- War on Terrorism
- Energy
- Environment
- Education
- Healthcare
- Taxes
- Second Amendment Rights
- Freedom of Political Speech
- Judicial Filibusters
- Secret Ballots for Workplace Elections

Perhaps, after the relentless analysis and critique of Udall's statements and voting record provided by this website's contributors, his campaign may have decided it's time to rethink the candidate's positions on some key issues. We are most understanding and indulgent, willing to "pardon [the Udall campaign's] dust" for awhile, as Net surfers drop by here to learn more.